Restaurant & cafe HVAC
Restaurant & cafe HVAC in Al Sulaimaniyah
In Al Sulaimaniyah, central Jeddah, small and mid-sized cafés and restaurants are cramped for space and ventilation. The HVAC must pull odours from the tight kitchen and keep diners cool without noise or harsh draughts.
- Pressure balance
- Make-up air
- Coil protection
Clients We're Proud to Serve
Organisations and companies that trusted Alrabih with their projects.
When your restaurant needs a specialist
- 1
Kitchen smells reaching diners
When the extract hood pulls out more air than is replaced, the kitchen goes negative and draws air from the dining room, bringing smells with it. The answer is calculating the volumes and delivering make-up air close to the hood.
- 2
Dining room stays warm despite the AC
A full dining room in Jeddah's humid summer raises heat and moisture load noticeably. Design must account for peak occupancy, and the right diffuser layout achieves even cooling across tables, not cold near the duct and warm in the corners.
- 3
Repeated breakdowns in kitchen AC units
Grease vapour from the burners settles on evaporator coils and blocks airflow, raising pressure and stressing the compressor. Placing the unit away from grease currents and scheduling coil cleaning reduces this damage significantly.
Who it's for
Opening a new restaurant that needs a full HVAC system
We design the cooling and make-up air system from scratch to match your kitchen and dining layout before you open.
Ask on WhatsAppYour restaurant is running but smells are reaching the tables
We survey the existing system, measure pressure between kitchen and dining, then correct the fault by adding make-up air or adjusting the air balance.
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What the work covers
- Kitchen and dining pressure survey
- Make-up air for hood
- Diffuser layout for dining
- Ductwork to SMACNA standards
- Air balance commissioning
How we work
How we work
- 1
Site and kitchen survey
We visit, measure the spaces, review the existing extract hood and burner positions, and find where negative pressure is occurring before any design work.
- 2
Design and equipment selection
We design the make-up air and cooling systems together, and select units from Carrier, YORK, General, Midea, Gree or Smart Gold to suit the space and the load.
- 3
Duct fabrication and installation
We fabricate ducts in our workshop from G90 galvanised sheet to precise sizes, install the units, and run Mueller copper in runs of up to 30 metres without welded joints, insulated with Armaflex.
- 4
Balancing and handover
We run the system and adjust dampers until the kitchen sits at slight negative and the dining room at slight positive, confirming that doors open easily and no kitchen smell crosses to the guests.
Integrated design or separate units with no balance?
| Alrabih | The usual way | |
|---|---|---|
| Make-up air | Calculated and delivered to the hood | Usually not addressed |
| Dining pressure | Slight positive, no smell transfer | Negative, pulls kitchen air in |
| Coil protection | Unit placed away from grease | Repeated breakdowns |
| Cooling spread | Diffusers sized for full occupancy | Uneven, warm corners |
| Kitchen ductwork | Fabricated in-house from G90 sheet | Off-the-shelf sizes, poor fit |
Everything your AC needs, from one team
From system design and duct fabrication to installation, commissioning and maintenance.
Split AC installation
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Some of our work
Ductwork, rooftop units and diffusers, from work we've completed in Jeddah.
Customer reviews
What our customers say
- Muhammadramzan 2641
“MashaaAllah. Services are so good. Behaviour and kindness 100/100. Prices are less then Market. Fully recommended”
- shahzeb armani
“Wow. Prices are so comfortable. Outstanding services. People are so talented and nice”
- Tawfik AlyawerLocal Guide
“U can find all u need for air conditioning”
Your satisfaction matters to us! If you had a great experience with us, we'd love a 5-star rating and a kind review.
Worked with us? Leave a reviewService areas
We come to you anywhere in Jeddah
From Al Shiraa and Al Yaqout in the north to Al Thaghr and Al Quraiyat in the south, with our base in Al Aziziyah.
What sets this district apart
Al Sulaimaniyah holds small and mid-sized cafés and restaurants in older buildings than Al Jamea, often with tight kitchens sitting right next to the dining area with no real barrier. The confined space makes the cooling system more sensitive because the stove and oven sit close to the customers, and any imbalance traps steam and odours fast. Here the units must be powerful yet cleverly distributed to cool diners without subjecting them to direct cold draughts.
Al Sulaimaniyah is in central Jeddah, a district of small cafés and restaurants in older buildings with tight spaces.
Most small cafés here rely on one or two split units to cover both the dining room and kitchen, often with additional ceiling fans.
The AC setup in Al Sulaimaniyah
- 1
One or two splits with basic extraction
Small cafés here typically use a single split unit with a basic manual or simple extraction hood above the kitchen.
- 2
Ceiling fans for air circulation
The tight space needs ceiling fans to spread cold air evenly across tables without harsh direct draughts.
- 3
Simple extraction through the external wall
Ducts run straight through the nearest external wall to avoid long, complex runs.
Before the visit
Before our visit in Al Sulaimaniyah
- 1
Measure the kitchen and dining area precisely
The kitchen and dining dimensions are critical for sizing the unit and extraction, so send us a photo or measurements before we visit.
- 2
Identify the nearest external wall
Tell us which external wall is closest to the kitchen so we can run the extraction duct without disrupting decor or structure.
- 3
Confirm access to ceiling and walls
Make sure the ceiling and walls are safe and free of electrical wiring before the visit day.
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FAQ
Questions about Restaurant & cafe HVAC
What is the difference between make-up air and kitchen air conditioning?
Make-up air replaces the volume the hood extracts, its purpose is pressure balance not necessarily cooling. Kitchen air conditioning tackles burner heat and lowers temperature for the staff. Both may be needed, and the site survey determines which your kitchen requires.
Do outdoor seating areas need a different approach in Jeddah?
Yes. In Jeddah's heat and humidity, fans alone are not enough during peak months. The right option depends on whether the space has an open roof or a partial enclosure and how large the area is. We assess the spot and propose suitable units after the survey.
How are AC coils protected from kitchen grease?
The first step is design: we position kitchen units in airflow paths away from the grease rising off the burners. In preventive maintenance contracts we schedule pressure coil cleaning before build-up raises stress on the compressor, because early cleaning is simpler and less costly than a repair.
Can existing ductwork in an operating restaurant be repaired or does it need replacing?
The decision follows a duct inspection: we look for air leaks, grease build-up inside, and sheet corrosion from Jeddah's salty air. If the structure is sound we seal joints with Foster sealants and re-insulate with Kimmco. If not, we fabricate new sections in our workshop and replace the damaged runs.
Does a packed dining room during peak season affect how the AC performs?
Yes, every person in the room adds heat and moisture, and this is significant in Jeddah's summer. Design therefore accounts for full occupancy load, not average attendance, and diffusers are positioned to deliver even cooling across all tables. The exact layout is confirmed after the site survey.
My kitchen is very small, how do you fit an extraction hood?
We mount a compact extraction hood directly above or to the side of the cooking area and run the duct through the external wall.
My ceiling space is very tight, how do you route the ducts?
We route ducts through the tightest available paths and drop them along walls if necessary, while preserving your interior design.
Kitchen odours reach the customers fast, does cold air help spread them?
Cold air alone does not solve it, but strong extraction over the kitchen paired with separate fresh-air supply captures odours before they spread to customers.
Will one unit cool both the dining room and kitchen adequately?
One unit usually cannot handle both the kitchen and diners due to excess oven heat, so we recommend an additional unit or a larger one with smart air distribution.
